2 Months Later, Snyder Still Looking For Answers

Two months after as  athletic director, the school system has still not released details of its investigation.

Update: Snyder Reinstated as AD Beginning Monday

“The process to at least reinstate Chip Snyder has been terribly slow. It is hard to believe that an anonymous email can generate a situation that has taken this long to sort out,” said Walter Lucke, Chesapeake High School’s PA announcer and father of a senior on the girls lacrosse team.

Anne Arundel County Public Schools spokesman Bob Mosier said Thursday more answers should be released soon.

“I would expect that [the investigation] will be concluded shortly,” Mosier said. “I can’t define shortly, but I think it will be concluded. As far as the frustrations on it taking so long, that is understandable, but the process needs to be able to play out in fairness of all parties.”

In January, Patch was told that after a Dec. 9-10 wrestling tournament on the eastern shore, parents wrote a letter raising concerns about conduct at the event. Snyder, along with varsity wrestling coach Paul Tolle, were then removed from their positions.

At an Anne Arundel County Board of Education meeting on Jan. 18, , Snyder’s wife Holly spoke to the board about the parental concerns that spawned the investigation.

“How does an email, generated by an anonymous letter, with a bogus email address motivated by selfish agenda, get so much attention with no name or contact given?” Holly Snyder asked the school board. “How does that have more credibility than Chip [Snyder], a 20-year veteran of the school system, with a clean record, and no history of formal complaints against him? In one afternoon everything he has worked for in 20 years was stripped down in the blink of an eye.”

Holly Snyder, along with five other concerned parents and students, spoke on behalf of Tolle and Snyder at the meeting in January, but still have not heard any news regarding the investigation.

Patricia Brewis, Chesapeake High mother of a 10th-grade lacrosse and football player, told Patch in an email she is hopeful the process will end soon.

“I am optimistic that the process is coming to an end,” Brewis wrote. “I think that the Board of Education has a process to follow and sometimes we may not enjoy the length of the process, but we want them to be thorough so that Coach Snyder can come back to Chesapeake.”

Since Snyder was removed, the winter sport season has ended, and the spring one has begun. While Snyder was removed from his position as athletic director, he remains a physical education teacher at the school.

Along with the support Tolle and Snyder received at the board meeting, parents and students have held petition signings .

“I think that the community support to have Chip [Snyder] and Paul [Tolle] reinstated has been top notch,” Chesapeake varsity cheerleading coach Lisa Freburger wrote in an email. “It is nice to see how the Chesapeake community comes together to support each other, which is why it’s great to be a part of it. I am hopeful each day that the required processes are coming to a close and that we can all get back to normal!”